Wetherspoon owner met Nottingham pubgoers at one of his free houses to convince them “as a country we could do well out the EU”.
The chairman of the pub chain, Tim Martin, 63, spoke at The Roebuck Inn, St. James Street, detailing the benefits of a no-deal Brexit ahead of Parliament’s meaningful vote.
He said: “No deal isn’t a cliff edge, it’s the opposite. There’s also the benefit of not having to pay £39 billion on 29 March.
“There’s no legal liability to pay any money after leaving in March.”
After a hard Brexit, “The price of orange juice will go down, Sauvignon Blanc goes down, Children’s clothes go down.”, the multimillionaire added.
The former University of Nottingham described May’s deal as a “con” and without significant Parliamentary support, the vote has been delayed.
He has launched a campaign attacking May’s approach to Brexit, displaying posters promoting this in his pubs.
Martin’s poster suggested May should not be against no-deal because “slashing protectionist EU import taxes”.
One Brexiteer attending said: “the EU has too many countries, many that don’t contribute to the pot evenly. The sooner we’re out, the better.”
When asked about the end of freedom of movement at the discussion last week, Martin said: “I would say you can come and live here, if you have a job because then we know they can do the country some good.
“We are not closing the draw bridge.”
Martin, who has appeared on Question Time, said: “I might have one view on this and you might have another, but that is a debate for the UK, not for people we haven’t elected to decide.”
He has continued campaigning in Wetherspoon pubs across the UK, with a meaningful vote on May’s withdrawal agreement to take place before 21 January 2019 at the latest.
